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Julia Lacey
Julia Lacey is a character from the Widearce trilogy. Appearance Personality Julia is a shy, timid yet kind-hearted young woman. Due to her sheltered upbringing, Julia tends to act awkward around others and has very few friends. Her only interaction with her peers is with Richard, who is her cousin and betrothal (also secretly her brother). Julia cares deeply for others, especially her putative mother Celia and her stepfather John. As a child, Julia held great affection for Richard, whom she loved as a brother, but as his bullying esculated into violence, she started to despise him and desired to escape from him. The one time he is out of her life briefly, she finds love for the first time with a man named James. She also cares for Ralph, who has helped protect and care for her since infancy. Her insecurity however never clouds her intelligence. She gradually discovers that Richard is actually a rapist and murderer, and is left sad and confused when Richard rapes her to silence her. However, she does feel that she must honor her mother's wish of her and Richard inheriting Wideacre by marrying Richard upon learning she is pregnant by him. Although she learns he murdered Celia and John to stop them from annulling the marriage, she feels she must stay with him for her child's sake and comes to love her unborn daughter, Sarah. Julia's last act before her death is giving Sarah up to protect her from Richard and asking Raplh to kill Richard. Biography Julia was born in France to Beatrice and Harry Lacey, who are siblings. Beatrice became pregnant after convincing Harry to enter in a sexual relationship with her and Beatrice believed she was carrying a son who will secure her as the true owner of Wideacre. However, she knew Harry would reject the child for being an incestuous bastard child and she decided to give the child to Celia. When Julia was born, Beatrice was disappointed while Celia and Harry were overjoyed. Upon returning to England, Julia was showered with love and attention from her parents and grandmother, and even Beatrice came to love her daughter but remained distant to protect her secret from others. Beatrice described Julia as a beautiful child with lively and intelligent blue eyes and keen observation, and was loved by the villagers. One time, Beatrice was caught holding Julia by Celia, who reacted with dismay. On another occasion, Beatrice took Julia out for a ride in the village without permission, leading to a confrontation with an angry Celia. Shortly after Julia's first birthday, her brother-cousin, Richard, was born. The two were raised together more as siblings than cousins and were encouraged to play with each other. After Richard's birth, Julia was made a join heir alongside with Richard by their parents, Beatrice and Harry, without the knowledge of Celia and John. By the time they find out, the estate has been mortgaged into bankruptcy and the villagers were plotting to burn down the estate for revenge. Harry, Celia, and John take the children away from Wideacre to save them from Beatrice. After Harry dies from a heart attack, John becomes Julia's stepfather by marrying Celia and they settle in a small estate near Wideacre. From her early childhood, Julia was kept under close survelliance by her mother and stepfather, so much so that she had no friends, other than Richard, who always treated with contempt and bullied her. As she becomes a teenager, Julia is able to meet more people of her age and make a couple of friends. One of them, she meets a nobleman named James, who becomes smitten with her and pursues her. Although Julia is confused why someone like James would be attracted to someone sheltered and awkward like her, she falls in love with him. However, Richard, who is adamant of inheriting the estate with Julia to follow Beatrice's wish, is the most opposed to the engagement. During this, all of Julia's friends are found dead one by one under mysterious circumstances, although they appear accidental. Julia feels that Richard is connected to these deaths but she is reluctant to believe that the boy she had grown up with and loved as a brother is a monster. When Julia decides to accept James' proposal, Richard corners Julia and rapes her to break her will and dishonor her. In her heartbreak, Julia decides against marrying James but is too ashamed to tell him why. She keeps the rape a secret from her surrogate parents, but she later learns that she is not Richard's first victim; he had been responsible for raping many young women close to Julia. However, when she reveals this to him, he laughs at her and tells her no one will believe her, and he will kill her if she exposes him, leaving her fearful. When Julia finds out she is pregnant, she is devastated and ashamed, knowing she will be obligated to marry Richard to save her reputation. When she tells him the news, he reacts with excitement but blames the pregnancy on her. Nevertheless, he takes advantage of her emotional turmoil and they secretly marry. When they return to tell Celia and John, they find out that they are actually siblings, as Beatrice and Harry were their true parents.. Julia is shocked and amazed of the revelation and hopes this will secure her freedom and annul her marriage. Tragically, Celia and John are found murdered and Julia immediately suspects it was Richard, who reacts calmly when they learn this. Despite her growing hatred and fear of Richard, she feels she has to stay with him to save face and for the sake of her unborn child. They settle into married life, although Julia feigns affection to Richard to keep him from harming her. She is also surprised by Richard's strong interest in the pregnancy and his belief it will be a boy, but Julia believes it will be a girl. Despite the baby being the result of an incestuous rape, Julia comes to love and cherish her child, and dreams of escaping with her child from Richard. One night, Richard enters her room and seemingly intents to rape her again. Having had enough of Richard's abuse, Julia reveals her suspicions to him and, surprised and enticed by her angry and demanding attitude, he reveals the truth about his crimes to her. The horror and rage of knowing Richard is guilty causes Julia to go into labor. Richard goes to get help and, while alone and with no medical service, Julia gives birth to a girl, whom she names Sarah. Julia decides she must get Sarah as far away from Wideacre as possible and takes her into the woods during a blizzard storm, and comes across a gypsy family. She hands her daughter over with only telling them the baby's name and returns to the mansion to find Ralph holding Richard a knifepoint. Julia orders Richard to be killed and ignores Richard's pleas for mercy. As a result of the childbirth, Julia contracts an incurable illness and writes a letter to James on her deathbed, revealing the existence of her daughter and asking for him to look for her. Category:Characters Category:Female Characters Category:Wideacre characters Category:Fictional characters